ESPN and Top Rank have extended their agreement through 2025 which will have 54 boxing events across ESPN outlets.
According to multiple reports, shoulder programming was key to the extension which started last summer. The hope was that the additional should programming would help raise the profile of the boxers.
Dan Rafael of ESPN notes that Top Rank and ESPN signed a four-year deal which commenced in August 2017. It was amended in April to coincide with the launch of the ESPN+ streaming service. The new deal will continue to air live on ESPN in prime time as well as on ESPN+.
Payout Perspective:
It’s an interesting deal that should help Top Rank and ESPN’s new OTT platform. Already, we’ve seen Manny Pacquiao fight on ESPN+ and it’s likely we’ll get additional programming featuring boxers from the Top Rank promotion. What does that mean for HBO? How will Showtime respond? The boxing landscape seems to be changing.
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